The give-away attracted about 30 people by 12:45 p.m., said Katherine Ryan, a community outreach co-ordinator at Chebucto Connections. The group is a non-profit, community development organization.

“We’ve had a lot of youth come in, which is great,” Ryan said. She said visitors seeking goods did not need to prove they couldn’t afford to buy the items, which were donated by individuals.

“It’s more about bringing the community together, regardless of socio-economic status,” Ryan told The Chronicle Herald. “It is a swap thing, too — you bring in your clothes and you can take some clothes, or not bring clothes and still take clothes.”

The bringing-people-together event was part of 100in1Day in Halifax, a civic engagement undertaking aimed at improving the quality of life of a neighbourhood’s residents.

Haligonians were encouraged to take part in one or more of around 50 community-spirit activities, called urban “interventions,” staged around town. The project is new to the Halifax region and organizers hope to make it an annual event.

The clothing swap ran from 10 a .m. to 4 p.m. at a commercial property on Herring Cove Road. In the afternoon, a professional photographer offered free pictures to families and individuals.

“It’s for people in the community,” Ryan said, of the pro bono photo shoot. “You know, you might want to get a Christmas card done early or something like that, or just have your picture taken.”

Organizers of 100in1Day said on a website that Saturday’s event presented “the changes (local residents) wish to see in their city, all on the same day.”

“It is a social movement engaging citizens in positive acts of change,” the site said. It described an intervention as “any project, big or small, that allows people to showcase their ideas for a better city.”

Brandon MacDougall, an intervention leader, said in an interview the 100in1Day festival is a grassroots project involving community improvements that don’t need governments or large organizations to lead the way.

“It’s really about citizen power,” he said.

Ryan said the clothing exchange at Chebucto Connections wasn’t only a community resource “and a way to bring people together,” it encouraged the reuse of contributed goods that had some life left in them.

“It’s the idea that we don’t need to go out and buy clothes every single time we need a new outfit, because that’s obviously contributing to pollution and consumerism, and things like that,” she said.

“At the same time, we don’t need to throw our clothes in the garbage. If they’re still in good condition, it’s great that somebody else might find a nice new piece for themselves.”